101 Ways to Invest Money – Be Creative

The final part of 101 Ways to Invest Money Series searches for unique ways to invest money in everyday life. Whether it’s over the phone, over the internet, or person to person, these are 80 investment ideas that you can work on today.

This list is flexible, so feel free to swap in whichever element relates best to your personal life.

Here are the remaining ways to invest money:

21. Loan money on Prosper.com
22. Loan money to a friend.
23. Sell snacks out of your office or dorm room at lower prices than the vending machines.
24. Buy an ad in the newspaper to promote your service or product.
25. Buy products from wholesalers, and flip them on Yahoo! auctions.
26. Start a blog, buy reliable hosting, and post ads on your site.
27. Hire workers, and pay them to shovel snow or rake leaves around the neighborhood.
28. Trade corn futures.
29. Buy a municipal bond.
30. Buy wireless internet for your apartment and charge next door residents to use it.
31. Buy stocks over the OTC market, then hold them.
32. Get a raise by investing your time in an expressive extracurricular project.
33. Purchase a pinball machine and strategically place it in a high traffic arcade.
34. Earn money from a wash machine and/or dryer if your apartment building lacks one.
35. Save your loose change and deposit it in a bank instead of spending it.
36. Buy a cloth and soap, and host a car wash.
37. Work overtime, then save 100% of your overtime earnings.
38. Equip your computer with a reliable virus scan to fend off viruses and hardware damage.
39. Skip your coffee break once a week, and deposit the money in your savings account.
40. Buy water filters, instead of drinking bottled water.
41. Drink tea whenever you get the chance. It’s cheaper than coffee.
42. Buy a personal finance tracker line MSN Money Deluxe or Quicken.
43. Invest in mutual funds whose manager is well known and revered.
44. Invest 25 cents of every dollar you spend.
45. Trade oil futures.
46. Trade Wheat futures.
47. Invest in high quality health care to protect your well being.
48. Rent out your home to weekend travelers.
49. Plant a garden, and grow your own vegetables.
50. Make sure your employer participates in 401k matching plans.
51. Buy Foreign ADRs (American Depository Receipts).
52. Buy a ticket, and visit the local museum. You’ll learn something new and interesting.
53. Sell stocks short.
54. Buy stock options through your brokerage account.
55. Invest in a college education.
56. Invest in a graduate degree.
57. Invest in a doctoral degree.
58. Take a writing course, and further develop your prose.
59. Sponsor a local sports team, and display your company logo on the team uniform.
60. Hire a SEO (search engine optimization) expert to improve your site’s search engine rankings.
61. Start a business out of your home office.
62. Open a Roth IRA to prepare for your retirement.
63. Invest every dollar you don’t earn from your day job in your investment account.
64. Get a notary license to stamp documents.
65. Get a top secret clearance to view secure government documents. Your employer will be very impressed at your clearance.
66. Apply for a real estate license, and become a real estate agent.
67. Sell arts & crafts at flea markets on the weekends.
68. Buy arts & crafts from flea markets, and get them appraised.
69. Borrow money from credit cards, then deposit the balance in a high yielding savings account. Pay the credit balance in full each month, and keep the difference.
70. Buy an abandoned home, fix it up, then sell it for profit.
71. Ride your bike on the weekends, then take the money you save on gas and buy small cap stocks.
72. If you left college early, go back and finish up your degree.
73. Read countless books on investing and money management.
74. Hire a professional money manager to control your assets.
75. Start an import-export business.
76. Take a referee/sports official’s course, and referee soccer and basketball games on the weekends.
77. Buy stock market index funds.
78. Buy a pair of hair clippers, and charge $12 for a haircut.
79. Ladies, buy a set of female hair utensils, and charge a hair styling fee.
80. Renovate your home to increase its resale value.
81. Start a trust fund for your children.
82. Build upon your greatest passion, and start a foundation or fund.
83. Buy foreclosed homes, and resell them to willing buyers.
84. Purchase a commercial building, and rent the space out to businesses.
85. Raise chickens on a farm, and harvest the eggs.
86. Sponsor a high school student’s college education. They will thank you graciously after graduation.
87. Be munificent. Donate to public foundations and non-profit organizations. Those who give receive the most in return.
88. Contribute articles to major news sources. They may offer you a job.
89. Manage a colleague’s finances for a small fee.
90. Invest in nanotechnology.
91. Design t-shirts and gifts at Cafepress, then sell them for profits.
92. Invest in water.
93. Invest in corn futures.
94. Sign up for the Fidelity Investments Visa Rewards card to earn 1.5% cash back. Fidelity deposits the money directly into your investment account.
95. Sign up for the ShareBuilder Platinum Rewards Card to earn 1% cash back into your investment account.
96. Max out your 401(k) and Roth IRA contributions annually.
97. Write down a list of reasons why you deserve a raise, then present them to your boss.
98. Invest in a marriage.
99. Invest in long lasting friendship.
100. Buy whatever Warren Buffett invests in.
101. Invest in your financial independence by reviewing this list and creating your own!

Many of these examples are great ways to make money as well. Investing and saving money go hand in hand; The more money you save, the more cash you are able to invest. I’ve found the easiest way to generate money for investment purposes is to eliminate silly expenses. We can look at our monthly expenses, and ask ourselves for next month, “What do I need? and What do I want?”

Draw two columns, and categorize your purchases as “Wants” or “Needs.” Next, circle a few items from your want list, and refrain from purchasing these items for one month. You’ll save the cost of the items, which can go directly into your investment account.

A good investment returns more value than you put in. The time you spend on your investments correlates with the overall performance of that investment. Aside from markets which we can only monitor, your decisions and time management greatly impact future investment opportunities.

Look for alternatives investment ideas other than public markets and exchanges in your everyday life, and you’ll discover novel ways to invest your money, time, and effort.